Jeremiah 17 · Verse 11

Jeremiah 17:11

As the partridge sitteth on eggs, and hatcheth them not; so he that getteth riches, and not by right, shall leave them in the midst of his days, and at his end shall be a fool.

Jeremiah 17:11, King James Version

Jeremiah 17:11 in other translations

BSB	Like a partridge hatching eggs it did not lay is the man who makes a fortune unjustly. In the middle of his days his riches will desert him, and in the end he will be the fool.”
WEB	As the partridge that sits on eggs which she has not laid, so is he who gets riches, and not by right. In the middle of his days, they will leave him. At his end, he will be a fool.
ASV	As the partridge that sitteth on eggs which she hath not laid, so is he that getteth riches, and not by right; in the midst of his days they shall leave him, and at his end he shall be a fool.
YLT	A partridge hatching, and not bringing forth, Is one making wealth, and not by right, In the midst of his days he doth forsake it, And in his latter end--he is a fool.
DARBY	As the partridge sitteth on eggs it hath not laid, so is he that getteth riches and not by right: in the midst of his days shall he leave them, and at his end shall be a fool.
BBE	Like the partridge, getting eggs together but not producing young, is a man who gets wealth but not by right; before half his days are ended, it will go from him, and at his end he will be foolish.
Webster	As the partridge sitteth on eggs, and hatcheth them not; so he that getteth riches, and not by right, shall leave them in the midst of his days, and at his end shall be a fool.

What does Jeremiah 17:11 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown

11. partridge--(1Sa 26:20). Hebrew, korea, from a root, "to call," alluding to its cry; a name still applied to a bustard by the Arabs. Its nest is liable, being on the ground, to be trodden under foot, or robbed by carnivorous animals, notwithstanding all the beautiful manoeuvres of the parent birds to save the brood. The translation, "sitteth on eggs which it has not laid," alludes to the ancient notion that she stole the eggs of other birds and hatched them as her own; and that the young birds when grown left her for the true mother. It is not needful to make Scripture allude to an exploded notion, as if it were true. Maurer thinks the reference is to Jehoiakim's grasping cupidity (Jr 22:13-17). Probably the sense is more general; as previously He condemned trust in man (Jr 17:5), He now condemns another object of the deceitful hearts' trust, unjustly gotten riches (Psa 39:6; 49:16, 17; 55:23). fool--(Pr 23:5; Lu 12:20); "their folly" (Psa 49:13). He himself, and all, shall at last perceive he was not the wise man he thought he was.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Verse 11 As the partridge - קרא kore. It is very likely that this was a bird different from our partridge. The text Dr. Blayney translates thus: - (As) the kore that hatcheth what it doth not lay (So is) he who getteth riches, and not according to right. "The covetous man," says Dahler, "who heaps up riches by unjust ways, is compared to a bird which hatches the eggs of other fowls. And as the young, when hatched, and able at all to shift for themselves, abandon her who is not their mother, and leave her nothing to compensate her trouble, so the covetous man loses those unjustly-gotten treasures, and the fruit of his labor." And at his end shall be a fool - Shall be reputed as such. He was a fool all the way through; he lost his soul to get wealth, and this wealth he never enjoyed. To him also are applicable those strong words of the poet: - "O cursed lust of gold! when for thy sake The wretch throws up his interest in both worlds. First starved in this, then damned in that to come." Blair.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Jeremiah 17:5-11

He who puts confidence in man, shall be like the heath in a desert, a naked tree, a sorry shrub, the product of barren ground, useless and worthless. Those who trust to their own righteousness and strength, and think they can do without Christ, make flesh their arm, and their souls cannot prosper in graces or comforts. Those who make God their Hope, shall flourish like a tree always green, whose leaf does not…

Read the full comment on Jeremiah 17:5-11 →

Jeremiah 17:11 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

קֹרֵ֤אko.Re'a partridgeH7124

דָגַר֙da.Gar[which] it gathers a broodH1716

וְלֹ֣אve.Lo'and notH3808

יָלָ֔דya.Ladit has laidH3205

עֹ֥שֶׂה'O.seh[one who] makesH6213

עֹ֖שֶׁר'O.sherwealthH6239

וְלֹ֣אve.Lo'and notH3808

בְמִשְׁפָּ֑טve.mish.Patwith justiceH4941

בַּחֲצִ֤יba.cha.Tziin [the] middle ofH2677

יָמָיו֙yo.movdays hisH3117

יַעַזְבֶ֔נּוּya.'az.Ve.nuit will leave himH5800

וּבְאַחֲרִית֖וֹu.ve.'a.cha.ri.Toand at end hisH319

יִהְיֶ֥הyih.Yehhe will beH1961

נָבָֽל\׃na.Vala foolH5036

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Jeremiah 17:11

Proverbs 28:20
A faithful man shall abound with blessings: but he that maketh haste to be rich shall not be innocent.
Proverbs 21:6
The getting of treasures by a lying tongue is a vanity tossed to and fro of them that seek death.
Jeremiah 22:17
But thine eyes and thine heart are not but for thy covetousness, and for to shed innocent blood, and for oppression, and for violence, to do it.
Jeremiah 22:13
Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by wrong; that useth his neighbour’s service without wages, and giveth him not for his work;
Proverbs 15:27
He that is greedy of gain troubleth his own house; but he that hateth gifts shall live.
Proverbs 28:8
He that by usury and unjust gain increaseth his substance, he shall gather it for him that will pity the poor.
Psalms 55:23
But thou, O God, shalt bring them down into the pit of destruction: bloody and deceitful men shall not live out half their days; but I will trust in thee.
Habakkuk 2:6-12
Shall not all these take up a parable against him, and a taunting proverb against him, and say, Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his! how long? and to him that ladeth himself with thick clay! Shall they not rise up suddenly that shall bite thee, and awake that shall vex thee, and thou shalt be for booties unto them? Because thou hast spoiled many nations, all the remnant of the people shall spoil thee; because of men’s blood, and for the violence of the land, of the city, and of all that dwell therein. Woe to him that coveteth an evil covetousness to his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the power of evil! …
Zephaniah 1:9
In the same day also will I punish all those that leap on the threshold, which fill their masters’ houses with violence and deceit.
2 Peter 2:14
Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls: an heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children:
Proverbs 13:11
Wealth gotten by vanity shall be diminished: but he that gathereth by labour shall increase.
Proverbs 28:22
He that hasteth to be rich hath an evil eye, and considereth not that poverty shall come upon him.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

sitteth, etc. or gathered young which she hath not broughtforth. he that.
5:27,28; 22:13,17; Pr 1:18,19; 13:11; 15:27; 21:6; 28:8,16,20,22
Isa 1:23,24; Eze 22:12,13; Ho 12:7,8; Am 3:10; 8:4-6; Mic 2:1,2,9
Mic 6:10-12; 7:3; Hab 2:6-12; Zep 1:9; Zec 5:4; 7:9-13; Mal 3:5
Mt 23:14; 1Ti 6:9; Tit 1:11; Jas 5:3-5; 2Pe 2:3,14
shall leave.
Ps 55:23; Pr 23:5; Ec 5:13-16
a fool.
Lu 12:20

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

Jeremiah 17:10
I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.
Jeremiah 17:11
As the partridge sitteth on eggs, and hatcheth them not; so he that getteth riches, and not by right, shall leave them in the midst of his days, and at his end shall be a fool.
Jeremiah 17:12
A glorious high throne from the beginning is the place of our sanctuary.

Read all of Jeremiah 17

Jeremiah 17:11 in other languages

Spanish Reina-Valera 1909	Como la perdiz que cubre lo que no puso, es el que allega riquezas, y no con justicia; en medio de sus días las dejará, y en su postrimería será insipiente.
French Bible J.N. Darby 1885	Comme la perdrix qui couve ce qu’elle n’a pas pondu, celui qui acquiert des richesses, et non avec droiture, les laissera au milieu de ses jours, et, à sa fin, il sera un insensé.
German Elberfelder 1871	Ein Rebhuhn, das Eier brütet, die es nicht gelegt hat, so ist, wer Reichtum erwirbt und nicht mit Recht: In der Hälfte seiner Tage wird er ihn verlassen, und an seinem Ende wird er ein Tor sein.
Latin Clementine Vulgate	Perdix fovit quæ non peperit: fecit divitias, et non in judicio: in dimidio dierum suorum derelinquet eas, et in novissimo suo erit insipiens.